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Musicians reveal their study playlists

Simple Plan

Photograph by: Warner Bros.
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Myth, medical fact, classical music has a reputation for being an optimal study soundtrack. Experts say Mozart, Beethoven, Bach and more all help to boost your brain power. But why stop at Mozart and pals? We've got some more suggestions for you, all collected from the experts: students.

By the way, these students - both current and former - also happen to be some of our favourite musicians. (Let's just say they've all got majors in music with a minor in homework.)

Check out their picks:

Shad, Simon Fraser University, Master's (Graduate Liberal Studies)

Study tunes of choice: Prince (But only between cram sessions)

In March, Shad bagged a Juno for best rap recording of the year (2010's TSOL). In June, he accepted his master's degree from Simon Fraser's Graduate Liberal Studies program. "I like school, but I'm not the best student in the world. I'm pretty engaged in class and I like writing, but I'm not a very meticulous person in general, so my academic work usually has a few holes," says the rapper, self-deprecatingly.

Listening to music while studying only leads to more of those holes, Shad explains. "I fall asleep to music actually," he admits. But he does say it helps give him focus during quick study breaks. "Anything kind of easy to listen to is good on breaks. Stuff that gives me some energy, maybe Prince or something."

As a part of Kidstreet with brothers Karl and Cliff, Edna Synder has party-started with Girl Talk, heard her electro-pop confections in car commercials and crafted an anticipated debut. (Kidstreet's album Fuh Yeah arrives Sept. 27.) All that and singer-keyboardist Edna is also finishing a B.A. Though she describes herself as "hard-working," she admits: "I have no idea when I'll graduate! I've really taken my time with this degree. Balancing the responsibilities of being both a student, working and in a band is pretty difficult sometimes, so I tend to take classes only when I know I'll have enough time to devote to them, like the Summer, for instance."

Music, however, is essential when class is in session. "There's absolutely nothing worse than studying in silence. Classical music is great because it keeps me stimulated," she says, adding that she took classical piano lessons "from 10 on." "Sparklehorse is perfect for switching things up and I use Four Tet to bring me back to life when I'm feeling tired!

"I don't think I'd get anything done if I was just sitting alone in my room, a textbook in front of me, and dead silence pressing in. I'm not sure I'd credit music with my average entirely, but it sure has helped!"

For more on Kidstreet, check out their Facebook page. The band plays a handful of dates around Canada in September and October.

"I think classical music does enhance your capacity to study," says Jeff Stinco, lead guitarist for Montreal's Simple Plan, the pop-punk vets who are prepping to tour Europe this fall, in support of their fourth album, June's Get Your Heart On. "But I think at some point, we're all teenagers, and we listen to music that's probably not great to listen to while we're studying."

As a music student in the late '90s/early 2000s, Stinco jokes that listening to tunes was often the same as doing his homework. But he remembers his study soundtrack from high school: a diet of metal, Pearl Jam and Pink Floyd. And while Stinco says he was always a good student, he clarifies that his listening habits in no way helped his average. "If anything, it probably made my homework last longer," he laughs.

"At that age, I was just fascinated by music in general. Studying was just another way for me to listen to music," he explains. But if he really wanted to focus, Stinco would pull out Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. "I loved listening to something that I really knew well so I could actually not be distracted by the lyrics. To me it was really important," he says.

A French-Canadian, Stinco says that listening to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon and other records were part of how he learned English. "I knew every single part of it - the guitar parts, the lyrics, I knew everything about it. So studying to it was kind of calming."

Tokyo Police Club broke out in 2006 with their debut EP A Lesson in Crime. It was also the year drummer Greg Alsop put his studies on hiatus. (Sometimes, going on to release two further albums, tour the world, and do a guest spot on Desperate Housewives.)

Back in the day, though, the drummer says music had no place in study hall.

"I can't listen to music while studying," Alsop admits. "If a song's on, it takes all of my attention, especially if I'm already looking to be distracted from something I only sort of want to do."

He made one exception, however. "My friends and I took a lot of midnight music breaks though, when we were up late studying. Dance Mix '95 was the favourite. "1, 2, 3! Train With Me!" Classic study break tune. That disc was pretty much the soundtrack to my year and a half of higher learning."

For more on Tokyo Police Club visit www.tokyopoliceclub.com. Be sure to check out their covers project. Starting in late August, the band covered a song a day, each representing a year between 2000 and 2010.

Ohbijou's Casey Mecija, Ryerson University, BA (Radio and Television Arts); University of Toronto MA program (Sociology and Equity Studies)

Study Tunes of Choice: Dustin O'Halloran, Philip Glass

"I am slowly chipping away at my masters," says Ohbijou's Casey Mecija. "It's quite the load to balance with touring so it will be a slow but sure process." This fall is all about amping up the academic stress then, it seems. The orchestral-leaning Ohbijou release their third album, Metal Meets, Sept. 27. Touring follows, starting Sept. 10 in Sarnia, Ont. (they'll play an album-release party Sept. 30 at Toronto's Trinity St. Paul's United Church).

When it's time to revisit her coursework, though, Mecija has a secret weapon: music that gives her "optimum focus."

"I really prefer listening to music without words," says the singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist. "I find lyrics distracting when I'm trying to study. I often play Dustin O'Halloran or Philip Glass."

She continues: "It's the best music to listen to because it puts you into a calm mood. It's not aggressive in any way and allows for optimal focus."

The synth-singer-songwriter says he was similarly passionate about his schoolwork back when he was studying fine art at the University of Guelph. (The musician graduated in 2008.)

"I'd spend all afternoon in the library reading about relational aesthetics and then go straight to the wood shop to run the chop saw and blast T-Rex records all night long," he recalls.

20th Century Boy might be perfection for studio work, but O'Regan says he preferred something more atmospheric when it came time to cram for "more cerebral courses." A history of electronic music elective introduced him to just the thing: Brian Eno.

"I have a real hard time ignoring lyrics when I listen to music. So when I'm studying it's almost essential that the music I'm listening to doesn't have any recognizable words or else I start singing along and ignoring whatever it is I'm supposed to be reading!" he says. "Ambient music is great because it's not driven by rhythm or melody, but is instead all about setting a certain atmosphere.

"I don't think we pay enough attention to how our work environments shape the quality of the work we produce, whether as students or artists or both," he continues. "The same things don't work for everyone and I think the best thing to do is take some risks and try to think outside of the box when it comes to studying. Find what works for you and go with it."

For more on Diamond Rings visit www.diamondringsmusic.com. His ongoing North American tour with Twin Shadow reaches Toronto Oct. 3 and Montreal Oct. 4. Look for a new video, You and I in the coming weeks.

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